Starports

[J Griggs]

Dear Fellow Travellers,

I have long been inspired by Thomas M Price's vision of starports from his "Happy Landings" article in White Dwarf #43 (July 1983).

Referees: What are your thoughts/views on starports and startowns in your campaign(s)?

How much are they governed by local (in-system) law? Do you grant them extra-territoriality?

Do you envisage higher class starports as orbital, planetary, or both?

Do you have multiple starports servicing important/high traffic star systems?

Thanking you in advance for sharing your vision.

J. Griggs.

 

[Drakon]

My thoughts:

Dear Fellow Travellers,
How much are they governed by local (in-system) law? Do you grant them extra-territoriality?

The starport of Lemish is self governing in theory, but in practice the Starport and local planetary government are quite cooperative. LIS (Lemish Imperial Starport) is extra territorial as per the standard agreements between the Imperium and any member world. But the Starport Administrator and the local bureaucracy know how to work together.

Do you envisage higher class starports as orbital, planetary, or both?

Both. The high port is the "Interstellar Terminal" for traffic that is on its way elsewhere, while the planetary side is for local traffic.

An orbiting station will need fueling and replenshiment systems, but this does not exclude luxury hotel services and casinos for those on extended layovers.

Do you have multiple starports servicing important/high traffic star systems?

While Lemish is on the main trade routes, its interstellar traffic does not warrent multiple facilities. While all major towns and cities on Lemish have landing facilities suitable for space craft, interstellar and inter system traffic is controlled via LIS Control. LIS also handles customs enforcement for the system.

These are just my views.

 

[J Griggs]

Thank you very much for sharing, Drakon.

I like your views.

Griggs.

 

[Matt123]

Just my 2Cr.

How much are they governed by local (in-system) law? Do you grant them extra-territoriality?

Within the Imperium I treat them as extensions of Imperial authority, albeit run in co-operation with local government. Taxes and tax collecting is done for both Imperial and Local gain. Revenue collecting, airspace/nearspace control, neccesary services, etc are supplied by local corporations or government. Oversight and Security is supplied by or run under Imperial authority. The core aim being to facilitate interstellar trade and mitigate local influences that may seek to use trade for political gain or change policies with every change in government or public whim.

Do you envisage higher class starports as orbital, planetary, or both?

Both. Class A & B Starports have competitive surface interface craft for moving cargo, passengers and fuel. Those without Highports have more such services to cater for commercial traffic. In some cases these services may make the capital cost of a Highport unattractive. Of course competing against this is the political imperative for vanity projects.

Do you have multiple starports servicing important/high traffic star systems?

Yes, but only one holds the designation Starport. The rest are designated Spaceports, any of which can accept interstellar traffic. More to hold true to OTU tradition and easier administration for me as a gamer, over any deep economic or political reasoning.

 

[kilemall]

I have an IMTU Terran Confederation which is considered to 'own' space everywhere else but Terra itself- an outgrowth of the Outer Space Treaty.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outer_Space_Treaty

The treaty has been altered to allow for national ships to be armed, largely as a result of piracy, but warships are all nominally under the flag of the Terran Confederation and are to be called to international service in the event of war with extra-Confederation humans or hostile aliens.

As such, the starports are technically just a facility supporting a world that is TC territory.

However, areas on planets are colonized by TC charters, effectively development agreements awarded to nations, and for all intents and purposes within the borders of the colony it is an extension of national soil, even though technically the charter can be pulled or run out and not extended.

To complicate matters, the TC worlds with several chartered colonies have found a need to decide on world issues together, with people growing up on a world having more allegiance and identity with that world then their originating nations. This trend is causing social, political and economic tensions.

So a TC world often has elements of a Captive Government, a Balkanized world and a Participatory or Representative Democracy.

As such, the starport is considered TC territory and operates by TC rules and governance, but may have to deal or negotiate regarding world council issue, particularly BioQuarantine measures and an agreed upon law level re: import of weapons.

Often, the most restrictive nation/colony will get it's restrictions on weapons imports honored at the starport, even though there may be much more relaxed law level polities on-planet.

Nations may operate their own spaceports for in-system activity, usually for raw material mining and gas refining or landing 'domestic' produced goods in orbiting facilities, but there must always be a TC customs check, to keep the peace AND pay for the TC.

The Confederation is largely bankrolled through port fees, colony charter auctions, pharmabank actitivies, and import/export tariffs, which suits the member nations fine as it keeps the TC on a fiscal leash, focused on playing ball with starport access AND improving trade/economic activity, and avoids the politics of taxation that would ensue if a proportionate or 'TC citizen' or income tax was enacted.

 

[J Griggs]

Thank you all for your responses.

You have given me a lot to think about.

Griggs.

 

[DaveCrow]

IMTU Class A and B starports almost alway have an associated Highprort. C may, D and below don't.

On high tech worlds a class A starport may also have a beanstalk.

Orbital highports are under Imperial jurisdiction if a naval base is present. Ground facilities are under planetary control.

 

[jawillroy]

IMTU, A & B ports are highports primarilywhich may also retain lowports, largely dependent on local law levels and climatological concerns. In many cases, extraterritoriality is confined to the highport but does not extend to the surface. The lowport is there to service the shuttles that bring planetary goods to the highport, and offworld goods down to the surface.

(My Festrian Empire insists that a world establish an A or B port before it is granted full membership; worlds that can only scrape together a C port or less may be considered protectorate status but no further until they've got a highport in place to handle serious interstellar trade. So: a world IMTU must a) have a unified government that b) accepts Imperial authority, c) pays imperial taxes and d) maintains at least a B-class highport, which e) provides an extraterritorial zone.)

There's usually a few spaceports in a system, which at best reach the level of C-ports for the purpose of handling interstellar craft.

 

[DaveCrow]

For purposes of detailed system design the Starport is the best facility in the system and is almost always on the core world. The core world itself and other worlds in system may well have lesser quality spaceports. In the case of the core world a Class A starwort could be expected to have several planet side depots on major landmasses or near major population centers.

A gas giant might have an orbiting fuel depot or even refinery. Fuel prices at such a depot may well be higher than fuel prices at the starport. If a ship just touches and goes for fuel there is no opportunity to generate adition revenue from that ship at the starport or planetside...

 

[robject]

"Happy Landings!" has also influenced me inordinately in favor of Parkbays, blast walls, internal starport maglev, and the general layout of all starport elements, as well as what some Scout Bases look like.